Choices From the Past
by SolasNightThorn
Summary: After the failed mission at the Valley of the End, Naruto realizes that Sakura never cared about him. And as such he moves on and starts dating Ino. However after his three year mission with Jiraiya, he returns to Konoha to find that Ino is now with Shikamaru. The betrayal changes everything. NO FLAMERS!
1. Prologue

**Welcome one and all to my new Naruto drama. This is going to be a new Naruto. Please enjoy. As always please read and review.**

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**Key:**

~"Normal Speech"~

~_'Thoughts'_~

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Naruto. Anyone, who isn't Masashi Kishimoto, that thinks they do own it is an idiot. Bakas!

**Warning: This fic is Rated M FOR A REASON!**

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~ Choices from the Past~

~Prologue~

Sakura Haruno paced back and forth in front of the gate to the Hidden Leaf Village. She awaited the return of her sensei and teammates. After what seemed like an eternity the young kunoichi spotted her sensei walking towards the gate with someone draped over his back. Rushing over to Kakashi shouting.

"Kakashi-sensei! Is that Sasuke-kun?! Is he ok?! Where is he?!"

Sighing the jonin looked down at his student before shaking his head. "I'm sorry Sakura, Sasuke got away. Naruto couldn't beat him."

Furious Sakura glared at her teacher. "Why did they let the Baka fight him alone?!"

"Naruto was the only one left, the rest of his team was engaged in combat. He fought nearly to death."

"I don't care if he nearly died! He didn't bring my Sasuke-kun back to me like he promised. I don't even want to see him. Goodbye Kakashi-sensei." With that the pink haired girl turned and walked away. However unbeknownst to either of them, Naruto had woken up right as Sakura said she didn't care if he died. In that moment Naruto realized that Sakura had never cared about him, to her he was nothing but a tool to get Sasuke back. He decided that he was done chasing Sakura, he would find someone else hopefully.

Three days later Naruto woke in the hospital and through bleary eyes looked to the side of the bed and saw, to his surprise, Ino Yamanaka sitting at his bedside.

"Ino-san, is that you?"

"Hi there Naruto-kun. How are you feeling?"

"Alright. Now Ino-san please don't take this the wrong way, but why are you here?"

Ino smiled. "It's ok Naruto-kun. Well since Sakura doesn't seem to care anymore and Hinata is too shy to come. I figured I should at least be here. Besides I kinda wanted to see you alone, cuz well... I like you."

Confused Naruto shook his head to clear the cobwebs. After sitting up he looked at the girl before asking a very simple question. "What Ino-san?"

Sighing Ino moved to his bed and sat right next to him. "Naruto-kun I like you. As in I want to date you and be with you." And before he could answer she leaned in and gave him a soft kiss on the lips. And after his brain processed what had happened, he and Ino began talking and soon found a deep mutual attraction. From that day on the pair was inseparable, well until the day came that Naruto was told by his mentor Jiraiya, that he and the Sannin would be leaving for a three year training trip. On the day that they were to leave Jiraiya, Tsunade, Kakashi and Iruka were waiting by the gate for the blonde. After about a half hour Kakashi noticed that Naruto was walking towards the gate hand in hand with Ino. And after a long and teary farewell the blonde's parted and Naruto walked off with his mentor, and would not be seen again for three years.


	2. The Return

**Now I know that the prologue was a bit short but this chapter is quite longer. So enjoy.**

**As always please Read and Review.**

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~The Return~

Sunlight filtered thru the bedroom window of Sakura Haruno, as the light fell across her sleeping face she blinked a few times before fully waking. Sitting upright the pink haired girl stretched her arms upward before sliding out of bed. Walking towards her door she glanced at her calendar and smiled at what was marked on that day. Today was the day that her long time teammate Naruto was to return from his three year long trip with his mentor. Quickly showering and getting dressed Sakura headed out into town. She had requested this day off months in advance as to ensure that she was free when he did return. Long ago she had realized that her thoughts about the blonde and how he was never to blame for anything.

Around mid-day Sakura was walking around the eastern part of the village when she noticed someone standing on the top of a power line post. As she approached she saw the hair and knew it was him. Running over she shouted.

"Naruto! Is that you?"

Hearing someone calling to him Naruto turned towards the voice and looked down. Seeing that it the person calling to him was his former teammate Sakura he sighed before leaping down.

"Hello Sakura-san. How have you been?" Naruto asked with a despondent expression. His words showed the old Naruto, but the way he said them showed that he still felt the effects of her words.

"Naruto, I've been ok. But I... Naruto I'm so sorry for what I said. After you left Kakashi-sensei told me that you were awake when you came back after fighting Sasuke-kun. I said so many awful things, but I never meant them! I was angry and disappointed that I didn't have Sasuke-kun back. And cause you made that promise before you left I blamed you for it. Naruto I am so so sorry. Can you ever forgive me?" Looking into his eyes for any sign of how he felt. His response surprised her.

"Sakura, I forgave you a long time ago. I forgave you at the exact same moment I realized that you never truly cared about me. And please do not try to lie and say you do care. I understood that you only saw me as a tool to get that traitor back." As Naruto was speaking, Shikamaru and Ino were turning the corner and Shikamaru spotted the blonde. He quickly tried to change their direction but it was too late. Naruto spotted them and saw Ino wrapped around his arm.

Ino was unsure who she was looking at as the two blonde's eyes met, but when she saw the man's shimmering cerulean eyes shatter like two fragile glass orbs, she knew exactly who he was. Sakura watched in horror as it all played out. Tears began to form in Naruto's eyes and just as it appeared that the dam was about to break he closed his eyes. Sakura, Ino, and Shikamaru watched in terrified anticipation, waiting to see his reaction. When he opened his eyes what they was nothing what they expected. Ino expected tears, Shikamaru expected fiery rage, and Sakura feared seeing the terrifying eyes of the Kyuubi. But instead of any of these things his eyes were two frozen glaciers, and surprisingly enough, that were scarier that any of the other options.

Without a word Naruto began walking towards the couple. Shikamaru stepped in front of Ino fearing that the blonde might try and attack her. But he simply walked past them, but not before glancing at them. The look they saw in his eyes was not one of hate or anger, his eyes said that they did not matter. That he was beyond them. His eyes were not the eyes of the Naruto they had grown up with, or even any version of Naruto they knew existed. After the split second glance, the blonde continued walking away. He reached the corner, turned and disappeared from view. After a moment Sakura ran to the corner and looked for him but she couldn't find him. She sighed and looked back at the couple. All three feared for what may happen.

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After he turned the corner, Naruto leapt to the roof and was soon across town. His mind was racing but quickly came to a calm. He quickly made a plan. Step one; change his appearance. Step two; become stronger. Simple, with that he headed towards the shopping district of the village, intent on completing the first step of his plan. Walking past a few stores he finally walked into a store that had both civilian and shinobi clothing. Wandering around for a short time he finally decided on a form fitting black v-neck tee shirt with the Konoha crest embroidered in red on the left breast, along with a pair of grey standard issue shinobi pants that hung to about mid-calf. In addition to that he kept his black ninja sandals and his black cloth Hitai-ate.

Now while he wanted to make himself more obscure, part of him would always want to stand out. So after searching the store for a few minutes he found a dark red overcoat with a black inseam. Satisfied with his choices, he picked out several sets of the shirt and pants and carried his items to the counter. The clerk looked up and started to tell the blonde to get out of his store, but when his eyes met Naruto's, his words caught in his throat. He quickly rang up his items and told him the blonde his total. Wordlessly Naruto paid the man and left.

Quickly leaping across the rooftops he returned to his rundown apartment. Gathering up his old clothes, he quickly striped out his orange and black jumpsuit and tossed it on the pile with the rest of his old clothes. Hanging his new clothes in his closet he headed to the bathroom and took a quick shower. After drying off he walked into his bedroom where he slid his legs into his new shinobi pants and pulled one of his new shirts over his head. After quickly wrapping his thigh he clipped his kunai holster over the wrapping. Hanging his tool pouch from his waist he reached into his shirt to pull the necklace, Tsunade had given him, out from under his shirt. Walking over to his dresser he grabbed his Hitai-ate, holding it in his hand he stared down at the present his first teacher had given him. Sighing he lifted it up and tied it around his forehead, grabbing his new jacket he walked to his door. Slipping his feet into his sandals he opened the door before stepping out on the walkway. Sliding one arm into his new coat, as he slid his other arm into the jacket he stepped out into the sunlight and it felt as if a hundred pound weight lifted from his shoulders. With step one of his plan complete he headed for the Hokage tower in hopes of starting on part two of his plan.

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Sakura, Ino, and Shikamaru stood in awe of what they had just seen, none of them able to speak. Suddenly Naruto's mentor Jiraiya dropped down from the rooftops.

"Hey kids! Was Naruto just here?"

Turning towards the sannin Sakura spoke.

"Jiraiya-sama. Yes Naruto was here, but he just ran off."

Sighing Jiraiya reached up and scratched the back of his head. "Oh well. I felt a huge spike in his Killer Intent and rushed over. What happened?"

"Well you remember how when you two left, Naruto was dating Ino here?" Sakura gestured to the platinum blonde with her thumb. The old man nodded and Sakura continued. "Well while you were gone, she left him and started dating the lazy looking one over there. However before anyone could say anything to him, Naruto saw them walking together and he looked like he was gonna cry, but then his eyes looked like they froze over and then he walked away. But when he looked at them I felt this intense feeling of sadness and pain. But it was only for a second."

"I see. Well Ino?" The blonde looked over at one of the most legendary shinobi in the world. "You my dear girl are as stupid as your hair is long. You will never find a man as caring or devoted as my student. However, he has always believed in those you crossed him, even that Uchiha boy and I've sensed some serious anger towards that one, but the spike I felt was unlike anything I have ever felt before. You've hurt him in a way that no one has ever done before. I don't know, but you may have broken him."

"No way!" Shikamaru shouted, speaking for the first time. "My Ino-kun isn't that kind of person. Besides I think Naruto was more into his relationship with her than she was. Besides he left for three years, what did he expect her to do? Wait for him? For three years?"

"Yes." Everyone turned to look at Ino surprised that she had spoken. "He and I were both in just as deep. And I did tell him that I would wait for him, you were there Jiraiya-sama. I loved him with everything I had and he loved me. So it's no surprise he took this that badly. But I should have-" She suddenly broke down crying. "I'm sorry I have to go." and without another word she took off running and was soon completely out of sight. Shikamaru glared at both Sakura and Jiraiya before walking away.

Jiraiya looked at the pinkette. "I think we should go talk to the Hokage, before Naruto gets the chance. Let's go!"

"Hai Jiraiya-sama." Nodding the pair leapt to the rooftops and headed for the Hokage tower as quickly as they could. But not quite fast enough.

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Naruto dropped to the ground in front of the door to the Hokage tower and walked inside and headed straight up to Tsunade's office. As he approached the desk outside the office Shizune looked up to see a shinobi she didn't recognize. She greeted the man.

"Hello there. How can I help you?"

"Hello Shizune-chan. How have you been?"

Looking at the man confused. "I'm sorry but do I know you?" Right as she asked she saw the whisker marks. "Naruto-kun? Is that you?"

"Yes it is. Is the Hokage in?"

"She is. I'll let her know you're here." The blonde nodded and a few seconds later Shizune nodded and he walked into the office. Stopping in front of the desk he bowed.

"Hokage-sama."

"Naruto, what happened to you?"

"I decided that it was time for me to move on in life."

"Ok? So what did you want to talk to me about?"

"I would like to request a suspension from active missions so I may train for the upcoming Chunin Exams."

_'The Exams! How could I forget? I had best get on that.'_ The Hokage looked at the young man with a somewhat confused look. "Why would you want to take time to train? Didn't you just get back from you time with Jiraiya-san?"

"I did. But I feel that I could be stronger."

"Why? You spent three years with him."

"Yeah three years of learning how to suppress the Kyuubi. Hell the only useful techniques I know are Kage Bushin, Kuchiyose, and the Rasengan. And I am supposed to stand against the Uchiha and the Akatsuki? It would be easier to just slit my own throat." Tsunade stared at the young blonde, her mind unable to wrap itself around the fact that her former teammate had done nothing in three years to make Naruto a better shinobi.

"Naruto, I am so sorry. Of course your request is approved. Your name will be removed from the active duty list for the next three weeks in order to prepare for the chunin exams held the end of the month. Good luck and I look forward to seeing you in action." Naruto bowed to her.

"Arigato Hokage-sama." And with another bow he turned causing his new coat flare up and walked out the door. Leaving the Hokage sitting there confused at who she had just seen.

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Sakura and Jiraiya ran thru the halls of the Hokage tower. As they neared the Hokage's office they rushed past a blonde shinobi wearing a red overcoat. Ignoring Shzune's calls to the them, the pair burst into the Hokage's office startling the blonde.

"Oh Kami! You two better have a good reason for bursting in here and scaring me half to death!"

"Tsunade-hime, Naruto and I just got back to the village today. and well before we came here he wanted to find his girlfriend Ino. But he soon found out that she left him for her teammate Shikamaru. and it broke him, plain and simple."

"I have just seen Naruto. and I don't it broke him, just broke that mask of eternal happy he wears."

Sakura interjected. "Wait Naruto was just here? Did he leave thru the window? We didn't pass him in the hallway."

"That's probably because you were looking for a kid wearing 'kill-me' orange. The Naruto I just spoke with was dressed like a shinobi. So you probably walked right past him in the hall but didn't recognize him." Sakura and Jiraiya looked at each other thinking of who they walked passed on their way to the office, at the same time they thought of the blonde shinobi in the red coat and their eyes went as wide as dinner plates.

"You mean that man in the red coat?"

"Yep that was him."

"Kami I thought that was some jonin back from a long mission."

"Like I said. This didn't break him, it made him better. He actually came here to request time off to train for the chunin exams at the end of the month. Speaking of that, Sakura, could I speak to Jiraiya alone?"

"Hai Sheiso." With a bow Sakura left the office, in hopes of finding Naruto.

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Tsunade sat in her chair and locked her former teammate in a stare that could make the snake sanin shiver.

"So... uh... Tsunade-hime... what did you want to talk about?"

"Naruto gave me a report on your three year trip."

"Oh well then you must know how awesome of a sensei I am."

"Actually I'd call you a failure as a sensei."

"Wha-"

"Three years! You had three years to get him ready to face the Akatsuki! Instead you wasted it on the off chance he could learn to controll the Kyuubi! You are one of the three strongest ninja in the world. You could have made him one of us! Now he had to come request time off to train for an exam he should have been able to pass in his sleep! So yes you are a failure as a sensei!"

"Oh so he told you."

"Yes he did! I can't even look at you. Get out!"

"Ok Tsunade-hime." With that the toad sanin left the office realizing he had failed.

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Sakura could be seen running thru the streets of the village asking everyone if they had seen a blonde shinobi wearing a red coat. Some had seen him and pointed in his direction, most hadn't and just shrugged when she asked. Following the general directions she eventually arrived outside the Konoha library just in time to see the new Naruto walking out with one hand in his pocket and the other holding a bag of books over his shoulder.

"Naruto, hold up!" As she ran over he looked over with a bored expression on his face.

"Hi there Sakura-san. What's up?"

"I was looking for you. We passed in the hall before and you didn't say hello. You look... different."

"I know. I realized it was time for a change, orange just made me a target. Now I'm sorry but I have three weeks to get ready for the chunin exams and I can't waste any time. I'll see you around Sakura-san." With a nod he leapt to the rooftops and headed for his apartment. Sighing Sakura watched as he leapt away, her mind trying to wrap itself around what happened to her teammate.

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**Well there you go. Next time we see more of Naruto's training and we'll learn some more about his relationship with Ino.**


	3. The Changes

**Alrighty! Welcome one and all to the next installment of Choices from The Past. This chapter has some big events in it so lets get to it!**

**As always please R&R.**

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~The Changes~

Naruto walked into his apartment hanging his jacket on the peg next to the door. Placing his books on the table he walked into the kitchen and grabbed a water out of his fridge before sitting down and pulling the books out and looking at the titles making sure he had everything.

"Chakra Control for Those with Larger than Normal Chakra Pools"

"An Introduction to Chakra Natures. 2nd Ed."

"Training for Older Genin."

"Basics of Nature Manipulation. 4th Ed."

"Chunin Selection Exams: A History"

"Standard Ninja Arts. Abr. 5th Ed."

"Kenjutsu Basics. 9th Ed."

He also he borrowed a selection of varrious jutsu scrolls. Looking over his choices, the blonde decided to crack open "Training for Older Genin." He began reading and would continue well into the night.

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~Three Weeks Later~

A shirtless Naruto stood in a clearing panting, as the last clone vanished in a puff of smoke. Standing upright, he had allowed himself to break into a real smile for one of the first times. The exercise he had just completed was the final one in his Chakra Control book. The final exercise consisted of three levels with three tiers each. The first level involved fighting 25 kage bushins for 15, 30, and finally 60 minutes. Level two ups the number of bushin from 25 to 50, though the time stays the same. The final level takes the number of bushin to 100, and increases the times to 30, 60, and 120 minutes.

Walking to the edge of the clearing Naruto picked up a water bottle before plopping down with his back against a tree. Leaning his head back closing his eyes he let his senses spread out around him. Just as he was beginning to really relax, his senses picked up a chakra signature he didn't recognize moving through the trees. Jumping to his feet he pulled a kunai from his holster flinging it to intercept the signature. But to his surprise the telltale sound of metal on metal could be heard, his answer came in the form of a young girl appearing in the trees holding a short sword in her right hand and his kunai in the other.

She stands about 158 cm tall, with long auburn hair held up in a high ponytail with two bangs framing the top portion of her face, and bright emerald green eyes. Around her forehead was her Hitai-ate, tied with black cloth, the plate was engraved with four diamonds; a large one towards the bottom, a small one near the top, and two mid-sized ones in between. She wore a deep green leather vest trimmed in brown with a single short grey sleeve that covered the upper part of her arm. Strapped over her right shoulder was the sheathe for her sword. Around her waist was a simple light green skirt trimmed in tan with a simple strap over her left hip. Her left elbow and right forearm were wrapped in bandages, the only adornment was a black leather bracelet with simple studs, she wore it on her right wrist. Her right shin was covered in fishnet and her feet were covered by a pair of basic black ninja sandals. But the part about her that drew Naruto's attention was the tribal tattoo that wound its way up her right arm from her elbow all the way to her neck.

As the pair locked eyes Naruto was the first to speak. "Hello there."

"Hi. I assume that this is yours?" She held up the kunai.

"Hehe, yeah it is."

"May I ask why you threw it at me?"

"I'll answer that with a question of my own. You are clearly not from this village, may I ask why you are here."

"Simple, the exams. I am the only genin in my village that was chosen to compete."

"I see, may I ask your name?"

"Only if I can get yours."

"Of course, I am Naruto Uzumaki."

"My name is Kogoe Hayashi."

"What village do you come from? I don't recognize your Hitai-ate."

"I'm from Chirigakure, the Hidden Dust."

"I'm from Konoha. So Kogoe, can I have my kunai back?"

"Sure." Leaping down, she slid her sword back into its sheathe. Walking over to the blonde she handed him the kunai, which quickly disappeared back into his holster. It was only after that, that Kogoe realized that Naruto was shirtless. Before she could stop herself, she began blushing fiercely and quickly turned away. "Um, Naruto-san?"

"Yeah Kogoe?"

"Could you please put a shirt on?"

"Oh! Yeah sure." The blonde quickly picked up his black t-shirt and pulled it over his head. "It's ok Kogoe-chan you can turn around again." The girl turned back and took him in. Even with his shirt on she couldn't help but blush slightly.

"Well as nice as it has been meeting you Naruto-san, I need to go and register for the exams. I'll see you later."

"Goodbye Kogoe-chan. I'll see you later." After their goodbyes Kogoe leapt into the trees and disappeared. Deciding that he had done enough training he decided to go grab a bite to eat and hit the hay.

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~The next Day~

Naruto felt the sun's rays hitting his face as his alarm blared on the table. Reaching over he shut it off and stood up. Stretching up he glanced over at the calendar he smiled at the date, today was the first day of the Chunin Exams. After stretching and doing some push-ups, the blonde hopped in the shower. After his shower he got dressed and fixed a simple breakfast. As he was eating a knock came from his door, opening it up he was greeted by a female ANBU wearing a cat mask.

"Hello there Yūgao-san. How have you been?"

"I've been alright Naruto-kun. The Hokage would like to see you. Please report to the roof of the Hokage tower." With that she moved to leave but turned back. "Naruto-kun?"

"Yeah Yūgao-san?"

"Good luck. I'll be watching for you in the finals."

"Thanks Yūgao-san." and with a nod the purple haired ANBU vanished in a shunshin. Closing the door Naruto walked over and finished his breakfast. Putting his dishes away he grabbed he coat slipping his feet into his sandals before locking his door and leaping towards the tower.

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Arriving at the top of the tower, Naruto was surprised to see a group of ninja from several different villages, including Kogoe. Seeing that he had arrived Tsunade spoke.

"Now that everyone is here I'd like to thank you all for coming. Each of you is here because you are going to be participating in the Chunin Selection Exams, however as some you may know, here in Konoha the first two parts of the exams are proctored in teams of three. So in order to make sure of that, each of you will be paired with two other participants, by drawing one of these cards." Tsunade held up a stack of cards. "Now these cards are special. Once each of has one, I will instruct you to channel chakra into the cards. The cards will analyze your abilities and match you two other competitors that will balance each other out. Now the cards will not divulge your abilities, once your cards have chosen your teammates a number will appear on the card. I will tell you more once that is done. Now would everyone please step forward and take a card." With that each genin stepped up and took a card. "Now everyone channel your chakra now." For a few seconds a slight increase in chakra, to those sensitive to differences in chakra levels, it was plain who had good chakra control and who didn't. "Alright now onto the teams, 1..." After a few minutes she called out "6?" With that Naruto stepped forward and to his surprise Kogoe stepped up along with another Leaf shinobi. Soon all the teams were completed and the Hokage dismissed all. Naruto turned to his new teammates.

"Meet me at the center square in 15 minutes. We should get to know each other."

"Hai!" The pair nodded and leapt down into the village.

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Arriving at the center square, Naruto saw the other two silently standing apart from each other. Walking over he waved to get their attention.

"Alright follow me." With a nod Naruto took off in the direction of the forest with the other two following. After a short while the three descended into the same clearing that Naruto and Kogoe met the day before.

"Alright why don't we introduce ourselves. I'll go first. I am Naruto Uzumaki, I'm 16 from Konoha. My sensei is Jiraiya. I have a primary affinity to Fūton and a secondary affinity to Suiton. and this is my second attempt at the Chunin Exams. Next?"

Kogoe stepped forward. "Alright my name is Kogoe Hayashi, I'm 16 from Chirigakure. I don't have a sensei. I have a primary affinity to Raiton and a secondary affinity to Doton. This is my first attempt at the exams."

As she finished she turned to the third member of their team. As he stepped forward Naruto and Kogoe took in his appearance. He stood 144 cm tall with grey hair with one bright blue bang in front of face, and bright blue eyes. He wore a kimono style top with only a right sleeve, the right side is a white color with a deep red flame motif on the cuff and on the left ribs, the left side is the same red color as the flames. His Hitai-ate plate was affixed to the shoulder of the right sleeve. His left arm was wrapped in bandages from mid-bicep all the way down to his fingertips. His arm was also wrapped in red fabric that is tied off at the wrist. He wore a pair of black shorts with his kunai holster on his right thigh, clipped on over some bandages. On his feet were a pair of standard blue ninja sandals.

"Ok. My name is Yakedo Subayai, I'm 13 from Konoha. My sensei is Hamaki Mimura. My chakra affinity is Katon. and this is my first attempt at the exams." Naruto nodded.

"Alright since we are going to be fighting together we should probably share any special skills we have. I have enormous chakra pools and thus I am able to use the Kinjutsu, Kage Bushin no Jutsu in abundance. I also am the inheritor of the Fourth Hokage's hidden jutsu, the Rasengan. Kogoe?"

"Ok, I have advanced survival skills, as have been living on my own since I was born." She reached up over her shoulder and drew her sword out. "I also have a mastery of kenjutsu, and my primary weapon is my kodachi. Yakedo?"

"Well I really only have one special skill and that is my Kekkei Genkai; Moukaton, Inferno Style. It is a advanced fire style."

"Well that's interesting Yakedo, I've never heard of Moukaton. Could you give us a demonstration?"

"Sure Naruto." Stepping forward Yakedo shook out his hands before flashing thru a series of hand seals faster than most genin should be able to. Finishing on the tiger seal a large flaming magic circle appeared on the ground under his feet. He pulled his hands back into chambered possition, before thrusting them up and shouting.

"_Moukaton: Iraira Kanketsusen no Jutsu!_ (Inferno Style: Raging Geyser Jutsu)" Suddenly a very intense column of flame shot out of the ground surrounding Yakedo. After a few seconds the fire dissipated, leaving Yakedo surprisingly untouched. Kogoe jumped up.

"Yakedo! How are you, like you know, not on fire?"

"It's part of the specialty of Moukaton. My family is immune to any form of fire, and the damage it would cause."

"That is impressive. Now since I've taken the exams before I'm gonna go over the different parts of the exam. The first part is the written exam, now the exam isn't about knowing the information, it is actually about collecting information. It'll make more sense once we get there. Now if you feel like you aren't able to collect the info, just ignore the first nine questions. When we reach the final question just do as I do. Got it?" The other two nodded. "Now the second exam is a team mission. We will be in a forest and we will have either a heaven or an earth scroll. Our objective is to collect the other scroll from one of the other teams and make it to a tower in the middle of the forest, we have five days to complete this."

"The finals are a tournament of one on one fights to determine who is worthy of being a chunin. Now these fights take place a month from the end of the second exam. This is because the finals are a big deal for a lot of high-profile individuals. The month is also to train and fix anything that might be off before the finals. Now I don't know about you guys, but I'm getting hungry, anyone wanna grab some lunch?" The other two nodded and the team headed back into town.

* * *

~Three Hours Later~

Yakedo walked over Kogoe, who was cleaning her fingernails with a senbon. As the young leaf-nin approached her, Kogoe stood up from the wall she was leaning on.

"Sup Yakedo-san?"

"Hey Kogoe-san, I can't find Naruto-san anywhere. After we left the ramen stand he just kind of vanished. He never told us where to meet tomorrow before the test. We gotta find him."

Walking over to him, Kogoe put her hand on his shoulder. "Relax, I'll find him. Just wait here. We'll be back." With a smile she leapt to the rooftops, and soon arrived outside Ichiraku Ramen. Kneeling down she examined his footprints in the dirt. A lifetime of hunting and tracking through the dustlands around her home village, had made Kogoe a master tracker. So all it took was looking at the subtle variations in the way the dirt had mounded around his footprints, for her to determine what direction the blonde had leapt. Following the trail she arrived on top of the Hokage monument and was approaching the fourth's head when she heard a guitar strumming. Settling down by some bushes she began to hear Naruto's voice.

* * *

_"She just walked away  
Why didn't she tell me  
And where do I go tonight  
This isn't happening to me  
This can't be happening to me  
She didn't say a word  
Just walked away_

You were the first to say  
That we were not okay  
You were the first to lie  
When we were not alright  
This was my first love  
She was the first to go  
And when she left me for you  
I was the last to know

Why didn't she tell me  
Where to go tonight  
She didn't say a word  
She just walked away

You were the first to say  
That we were not okay  
You were the first to lie  
When we were not alright  
This was my first love  
She was the first to go  
And when she left me for you  
I was the last to know..."

Listening to the song Kogoe was on the verge of tears when she heard the tempo start to increase, as Naruto began an impressive Guitar solo. After a little bit he began singing again.

_"_ _I'll be the first to say  
That now I'm okay  
And for the first time  
I've opened up my eyes  
This was my worst love  
You'll be the first to go  
And when she leaves you for dead  
You'll be the last to know_

I'll be the first to say  
That now I'm okay  
And for the first time  
I've opened up my eyes  
This was my worst love  
You'll be the first to go  
And when she leaves you for dead  
You'll be the last to knooooow."

* * *

The blonde was silent for some time before he spoke. "I know you're there Kogoe-chan. You can come out." Surprised Kogoe walked out to the front of the monument.

"That was beautiful Naruto-san. You have an amazing voice. If I may ask, who was that song for?"

"Thank you, and yes you can. That song was written for my ex-girlfriend Ino."

"What happened?"

"Well long story short, we started dating after this one mission three years ago. But then I left for a training mission with my sensei, which before we left Ino and I made a promise to each other to always stay true to each other and wait to be together again when I returned. But when I came back about a month ago, I found out she was dating her long-term teammate. A guy who I thought was my friend, and a guy she always said was more like a brother to her. So a few days later I was thinking about it and decided to write a song about it."

"What is the song's title?"

"_Last to Know_. I feel it fits perfectly because I was the last to know, apparently everyone here knew over a year ago."

"Well Naruto-kun, I think you are very strong for how you handled it. and I would love to hear you sing again." Smiling as she used the 'kun' honorific for the first time Naruto stood up.

"Maybe another time Kogoe-chan. I need some sleep before tomorrow's test."

"That's right the test. Yakedo wanted to know where we should meet tomorrow."

"Let's meet in the clearing. See you tomorrow Kogoe-chan." With a smile and a nod, the blonde vanished. Leaving Kogoe to wonder why there weren't guys like him in Chirigakure. Sighing she leapt back into town to let their teammate know where to meet, before heading to the hotel she was staying at to get some much needed rest.

* * *

**Welp there you have it. We've had the introduction of two OC's. The debut of Naruto's musical talent. and the lead into the exams.**

**Alright just a note to all my adorable little flammers. To those who keep complaining about my characters being OOC, if you want them in character, READ THE CANNON! People write fanfiction to write the characters in a way they like, not the way that Kishimoto wrote them. End of rant.**

* * *

Song List:

"Last to Know" ~ Three Days Grace (Life Starts Now)


End file.
